Chapter 18 You are responsible for the people you brought.
The employment relationship with Xu Jialan ended, and it was Shi Xinyu's birthday.
Shi Xinyu decided that Yinye Bar would be closed for one day on her birthday.
She planned to hold a birthday party at the bar, inviting her bar staff, as well as a few friends including Chen Yao'an, so that everyone could have a good time.
In the evening, Chen Yaoan went to the Silver Field Bar with the gifts she had prepared in advance.
When she entered, everyone had already started setting up the venue, and Gao Hou was there too.
As for Shi Xinyu, as the protagonist of today's event, she naturally doesn't need any help; it's not time for her yet.
When Gao Hou saw her arrive, he immediately put down what he was holding and came over to greet her, "You've come."
"You're here so early today, aren't you busy?"
"It just so happens that I'm off today."
The two had only exchanged a few words when a female shop assistant came to Gao Hou for help, "Officer Gao, could you help us hang up the balloons? They're too high."
Gao Hou had no choice but to swallow back the words he had been holding back, and said, "Coming."
“We’ll talk later.” He glanced at Chen Yao’an.
She nodded and went to help elsewhere.
Everyone timed it perfectly; the venue was already set up when Shi Xinyu arrived at Yinye.
Seeing everyone's thoughtful arrangements, Shi Xinyu was quite touched.
Her original intention was just for everyone to get together and have some fun, but it turned out to be quite formal.
"I didn't expect everyone to go to such lengths to decorate for me, thank you, thank you."
One of Ginno's employees chimed in, "Of course! How can we be casual about our boss's birthday!"
"Yes, of course it should be grand!" Everyone chimed in, and the scene became lively.
Shi Xinyu's interest was piqued, and she generously said, "Everyone can drink as much as you like today, it's on me!"
Everyone cheered immediately, "Thank you, boss! We won't be polite then!"
Shi Xinyu waved her hand, making it seem as if she were throwing away a fortune.
The store's employees immediately scattered and rushed to the bar.
After everyone had left, Chen Yaoan walked over and handed her the gift, saying, "Happy birthday!"
Shi Xinyu accepted the gift without any hesitation, saying, "Thank you."
Then she turned to look at Gao Hou, who was standing behind Chen Yao'an, and shamelessly reached out her hand, asking, "What about yours?"
Gao Hou smiled, took a simple box out of his pocket and handed it to her, "Happy birthday."
Shi Xinyu accepted the gift without hesitation, and didn't complain about its simplicity. She knew Gao Hou's style all too well; he would only pay attention to Chen Yao'an, and treat all other women the same.
"That's more like it."
"Please sit down, I'll have them mix you some drinks."
Shi Xinyu turned and went to the bar, leaving Gao Hou and Chen Yaoan alone.
Chen Yaoan asked him, "You have to go to work tomorrow, is it okay if you drink alcohol?"
"Drinking a little won't hurt."
She nodded.
Gao Hou wanted to continue the conversation when the door of Yinye Bar was suddenly pushed open from the outside, making quite a commotion and alerting everyone.
Chen Yaoan and Gao Hou also looked over.
The first person to enter was Ma Qi, followed closely by Xu Jialan, with several other people behind him.
Sensing the unusual atmosphere in the store, Ma Qi was momentarily confused. "What's going on?"
As the owner, Shi Xinyu was the first to greet them and explained, "I'm sorry, we're not open today. Didn't you see my WeChat Moments post and the sign outside?"
The group clearly hadn't seen a single one. "Why?"
"It's my birthday today, and we're having a party."
“Oh, I see. Happy birthday, boss,” Ma Qi replied.
"Thanks."
Xu Jialan stood silently to the side until she glanced around the store and saw Chen Yaoan standing with Gao Hou.
Chen Yao'an felt his gaze, glanced at him subconsciously, met his eyes, and then quickly looked away.
Then Chen Yaoan heard him say, "Since it's the boss's wife's birthday, would you mind if we joined you for a drink?"
Ma Qi chimed in, "Would the landlady do you the honor?"
"certainly."
Shi Xinyu readily agreed, but still felt a little heartache. She had just made a bold promise that she would treat everyone today, which meant she would have to cut back on her own spending. However, these guests were regulars here, and she couldn't refuse them.
Hearing Shi Xinyu agree to let them stay, Gao Hou couldn't help but frown, but he also understood that Shi Xinyu was a businessman, unlike him.
A large group of people entered in a grand procession.
Xu Jialan, however, headed straight for Chen Yaoan and Gao Hou.
The two sat side by side on the sofa.
Xu Jialan casually sat down next to Chen Yaoan, acting as if their relationship was special.
Chen Yao'an frowned, subtly moved to the side, and instead of looking at him, turned to talk to Gao Hou next to her.
Gao Hou and Chen Yao'an hadn't seen each other for a while. They were both busy with work. He was usually a man of few words, but now it seemed like he had endless things to say.
How have you been lately? Is the shop busy?
"It's not very busy; we haven't had many customers lately."
"That's good, so you don't get too tired. You should take care of yourself first."
Chen Yaoan nodded.
The two chatted back and forth in a harmonious atmosphere, but Xu Jialan couldn't stand it.
He forced his voice in, "What's so good about it?"
Both of them turned to look at him upon hearing the sound.
Xu Jialan looked relaxed, leaning against the back of the sofa. Suddenly, she raised her arm, which was closer to Chen Yaoan, and put it behind her.
The moment she realized that he was about to put his arm around her back, Chen Yao'an felt extremely uncomfortable and instinctively moved to the side.
Xu Jialan's hand, which had been hovering in mid-air, paused for a moment before resting on the back of the sofa. She teased Xu Jialan, "What are you nervous about?"
"I wasn't nervous," she said, unwilling to admit it.
Nevertheless, his action, viewed from another perspective, was quite intimate.
Gao Hou's keen senses as a police officer made him perceive Xu Jialan's provocation—a provocation from a man.
What does he want to do?
Declaring sovereignty?
What is the relationship between Chen Yao'an and him?
Have the two become that close?
He remembered that Chen Yaoan had told him last time that they weren't familiar with each other at all.
What happened between the two of them?
A series of questions surfaced in Gao Hou's mind, making his heart leap into his throat.
He wished he could violently shove Xu Jialan's arm away from Chen Yao'an's back.
But he held back.
He swallowed hard, pressed his heart down, and asked Chen Yao'an, "Should we switch seats?"
"No need." This was Xu Jialan's answer for her.
Chen Yao'an replied, "Okay."
Xu Jialan paused for a moment, and the air seemed to freeze instantly.
Chen Yaoan switched places with Gao Hou, and Xu Jialan also settled down.
Shi Xinyu and Ma Qi were in high spirits and brought over their drinks.
Seeing Xu Jialan's sullen face and then looking at Gao Hou sitting in the middle, Ma Qi immediately understood.
He squeezed closer to Gao Hou, and Xu Jialan made room for him.
He raised his glass. "Officer Gao, would you do me the honor of having a drink with me?"
Out of professional instinct, Gao Hou didn't like Ma Qi, so he refused directly, "No need."
Ma Qi was stunned for a moment, feeling that he had been humiliated. "Officer Gao, are you being so disrespectful?"
Upon hearing Ma Qi's words, Shi Xinyu glanced over and gave Gao Hou a meaningful look.
Today is Shi Xinyu's birthday, and Gao Hou didn't want to spoil everyone's fun, so he picked up his glass and took a sip with him.
However, Ma Qi did not give up. He held onto Gao Hou and refused to let him go. After this back and forth, Gao Hou was finally dragged away.
Seeing the two walk away, Xu Jialan asked Chen Yaoan, "Are you very familiar with him? Last time Huang Yuan caused us trouble, was it him you called?"
Chen Yaoan responded with a faint "yes".
What is your relationship with him?
Chen Yaoan didn't understand where he got so many questions from.
"I, Shi Xinyu, and Gao Hou, we grew up together since we were little."
Xu Jialan fell silent; it turned out they were childhood sweethearts.
The birthday party was much more lively thanks to the arrival of Ma Qi and his friends, and everyone clearly had a great time.
As dusk fell and the party drew to a close, several employees at Shi Xinyu's shop got tired and went home early.
Ma Qi was an uneducated and incompetent man who loved to hang out with his cronies. He was clearly still not satisfied and said to Shi Xinyu, "My family owns a hot spring resort on Yunshan Mountain. I've decided to have a party there in a few days. You guys come along."
Upon hearing about the hot springs, Shi Xinyu couldn't contain herself any longer. "We can soak in the hot springs?"
"certainly."
"We absolutely have to go!" Shi Xinyu's voice was already slightly tinged with drunkenness, but also excited.
She also gestured for Chen Yao'an, who was standing next to her, to go with her.
"I think I'll pass."
"Come with me." Shi Xinyu wasn't completely drunk yet. She didn't have much interaction with Ma Qi and the others in private, and it would be a bit awkward for her to go alone in an unfamiliar place. But she was also reluctant to give up this great opportunity to soak in the hot springs.
Shi Xinyu looked at him with pleading eyes, and Chen Yaoan reluctantly gave in, "Alright."
Maqi's party was scheduled for a weekend evening. He arranged for everyone to stay overnight at the hot spring resort and then come down the mountain the next day.
That afternoon, Shi Xinyu and Chen Yaoan entered the hot spring resort with their belongings, and Xu Jialan picked them up.
The hot spring resort not only has guest rooms, but also more than a dozen private villas. Ma Qi stayed in one of the villas, and the party was held there.
When the three of them arrived, a lot of people had already gathered in the villa. Ma Qi had not only invited them, but also many people they didn't know.
Knowing they had arrived, Xi Xi was the first to come out to greet them, while Ma Qi, the host, was left behind.
Chen Yaoan had a deep impression of Xi Xi, after all, they had just met not long ago.
Xu Jialan was clearly not expecting Xi Xi's appearance, and looked at Ma Qi with a somewhat pleased expression.
Ma Qi looked completely innocent.
When Xi Xi saw that Chen Yao'an had also arrived, her expression changed several times. She then leaned closer to Xu Jialan and said, "Jialan, you're here..."
Xu Jialan ignored her and instead turned to take the things from Chen Yaoan and Shi Xinyu's hands. "I'll put your things in for you. You can go and have some fun."
Chen Yaoan didn't want to get involved in Xu Jialan and Xi Xi's entanglement, so she immediately pulled Shi Xinyu away.
Xu Jialan went to put things away, and Xi Xi wanted to say something to Xu Jialan, but he completely ignored her.
Behind him, Xi Xi looked utterly defeated.
Ma Qi chased after Xu Jialan and explained, "I don't know where she got the news from, but she insisted on coming along. She's just a young girl, and she begged me so humbly, I couldn't refuse her."
Xu Jialan didn't say anything about it, only leaving out the sentence: "You are responsible for the people you brought."
It means he should keep an eye on her and prevent her from bothering him.
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